The hanging tree on the ash coloured hill
Still standing against the worlds elements
Battered by rain and twisted by the wind
The old hanging tree still remains
The tree upon which the nooses were tied
Beneath its foul branches the witches were tried
Against its thick bark even children had died
It was black against the sky
Slashed with snow and ice
Torso tortured up towards the heavens
Leafless arms reached to cup the moon
Grasping at the white nights skull
Branches decorated with noose tipped ropes
Swinging in the gentle breeze of the morning
Mist obscuring the horrors they held
Wide eyed horror of the death that befell them
Scorched earth opened and swallowed their souls...
Children singing in the night
The gloom ignighted by their song
Voices echo on the glade
Resonate as daylight fades
The aura of madness and decrepid evil
Menace seeps free with desires fulfiled
Exhumed long ago were the bodies of five
Two boys and three girls, all buried alive
No marks on the bodies, just beneath the tree
Found at long last by the searching party
Torched was the monster, up in flames it went
Embers and cinders to heaven were sent
Mixing with snow to fall back as black ice
Drenching the parents and dead children alike
The grey coloured hill dyed red in years passed
Now poppies flourish even upon the weak ash
The illusion of blood, crimson drips from the tree
Exposing the past of the ancient cruelty
The bark now blackened with age and with rot
Branches scrape skies in a skeletal parody.
The townspeople moved on, all was swiftly forgot
Until the forest swallowed the hill and the tree was lost
The wind in the branches can still stirr a cry
Shadows that dance trick even the naked eye
The sounds and the sights of the old hanging tree
Awash with the screams of souls longing to be free
A contest entry
- Give Me Goosebumps & Make My Skin Crawl by Touchof1der.
900 points, ended October 19, 2007, 9 entries
Honorable mention
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest
Please tell me what you think
Comments
1 - 5 of 5
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I love the depth and strength of the imagery in this piece. It painted the images perfectly within my mind and viewing the scene as it played out was done with great ease. You have without a doubt stirred the very recessess of my mind with this piece. Thank you for sharing and best wishes to you in the contest. Keep that quill handy dear poet!
♥ Touchof1der
PS:
It's no big deal, but I did note a few spelling errors that you may wish to give attention to when you get a free moment.
ignighted... decrepid... fulfiled... stirr
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Oh my... your entry is very chilling. At first I was expecting something like the country song by Marty Robbins... but I was thrown WAY off... I love it... perfect for this time of year.
Well if all goes well you will have the GOLD! Good luck!
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I liked it quite a bit. Good poetics. I read part of American Gods by Neil Gaiman not too long ago, and this brings to mind what I learned of Odin. I assume that Odin is a major part of what you're doing here, and that the tree is Yggdrasill at least in some sense.
Like these lines quite a bit:
Slashed with snow and ice
Grasping at the white nights skull
The bark now blackened with age and with rot
Branches scrape skies in a skeletal parody.
Couldn't help but feel like stanza 6 was a bit weak, though. not as poetic.
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wow! Magnificant!
Although I would suggest maybe changing your font color because i had to highlight to read it...
Love it! It's not a overkill, and it flows beautifly!
Good luck in the contest!
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Oh wow, this is beautifully put, well written, gosh it almost had me in tears.
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